The State of Ascanio is a gargantuan, orderly nation, ruled by the Governor with an iron fist, and notable for its state-planned economy, punitive income tax rates, and restrictive gun laws. The hard-working, cynical, devout population of 17.497 billion Ascanioans are kept under strict control by the oppressive government, which measures its success by the nation's GDP and refers to individual citizens as "human resources."

The government — a sprawling, bureaucracy-choked, moralistic, well-organized morass — juggles the competing demands of Public Transport, Spirituality, and Welfare. It meets to discuss matters of state in the capital city of Westminster. Citizens pay a flat income tax of 73.0%.

The Ascanioan economy, worth 828 trillion betales a year, is driven entirely by a combination of government and state-owned industry, with private enterprise illegal. The industrial sector, which is broadly diversified, is led by the Cheese Exports industry, with major contributions from Basket Weaving, Woodchip Exports, and Book Publishing. Average income is 47,364 betales, with the richest citizens earning 7.0 times as much as the poorest.

Soldiers with colourful mohawks make themselves perfect targets for snipers, cars are banned from built-up areas, Ascanio has designated Westminster as its capital city, and The Governor has just been declared ruler of Ascanio in an international press conference. Crime is totally unknown, thanks to a very well-funded police force and progressive social policies in education and welfare. Ascanio's national animal is the deer, which frolics freely in the nation's many lush forests.

Ascanio is ranked 122,226^th in the world and 1^st in Kandahar for Lowest Crime Rates, with 63.49 law-abiding acts per hour.